Catawba Cultural Preservation Project

Mailing Address
POBox 750
Rock Hill, SC 29731

Located at:
1536 Tom Steven Rd.

Email:
info@ccppcrafts.com

Phone:
803.328.2427

Fax:
803.328.5791

The archaeology staff has planted a demonstration American Indian Garden for the seventh year. The garden features corn, beans, squash, sunflowers, Jerusalem artichokes, and pumpkins. Visitors to see pre-contact planting techniques and come to a fuller understanding of the contributions of American Indians to the foods we enjoy today.

The American Indian Garden is located on the Catawba Cultural Preservation Nature Trail, 1536 Tom Steven Road, Rock Hill, SC. It is open to the public Monday through Saturday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Our demonstration American Indian garden has completed another season. It is time to shell the corn and beans for seed to use next year. With the recent controversy surrounding genetically altered seeds and loss of plant diversity, our old varieties seem more valuable than ever. Each seed holds not only the hope of a new plant next year, it also holds the history of its past generations.

Local folklore tells us that in addition to popcorn and strawberry corn, the Catawba Indians had white, yellow, blue, and red striped corn. We may never determine the exact varieties of corn and beans that the Catawbas grew, however, we are trying to find old varieties that match the descriptions that we have. Thanks to the nonprofit Seed Savers Exchange, we were able to locate a corn variety that has red stripes. We have also obtained black beans with white spots that reflect a description of Catawba grown beans. Recently a Poarch Creek tribal member sent "Old Hard Skin Pumpkin" seeds to the Catawba Cultural Preservation Project. Many of the old seed varieties are increasingly difficult to find commercially. Some seeds are available from only one known source.